In an unexpected turn of events, the Supreme Court agreed to hear the arguments in New Jersey’s sports betting case, giving new life to a years’ long battle against the Professional and Amateur Professional Sports Act (PASPA). Having gone against the U.S. Solicitor General’s recommendation not to consider the case, the Supreme Court has given hope to sports betting advocates and put pressure on the sports industry to review its options in the case of PASPA being repealed as the result.

Sports Betting USA conference launched over a month ago comes at an even more opportune time now to discuss the ramifications of this surprising action, and to consider how various stakeholders, from gaming to sports, should prepare for all possible scenarios. The event will be a place for the leagues to clarify their doubts on sports integrity and to evaluate regulated sports betting as a fan engagement and data monetization tool, driving new revenue opportunities for the teams. Routes to market, including interim strategies for the aspiring operators to start building a footprint with the sports-fanatic consumer base, will also be discussed to help the gaming industry plan their investments accordingly.

Daniel Wallach, a well-known legal expert who predicted the Supreme Court’s action, also a speaker at the conference, commented: ‘This conference couldn’t be happening at a better time as the leagues had been caught off-guard and now have to quickly map out a strategy that will allow them to come out of this battle with a win, whatever the future outcome of the NJ case might be. I had been looking forward to this conference since Clarion started researching it, but the stakes for everyone are much higher now, which will certainly provoke lively debates.’